"We'll pray for them" - I am not sure your assessment always is fair on this.

To be fair, I was raised fundamentalist but I was freed when I grew a spine and a brain. I always heard that phrase "We'll pray for you" used as a parting shot or last word in any debate or confrontation with those who disagreed with us and I eventually came to realize what it really meant.

I think the point he was making is that you are making some sweeping judgments based on personal experiences to generalize certain groups of people and cast them in a negative light, thus bringing a flavor of prejudice (which is usually considered negative) into a discussion that does not warrant it. In other words, a gentle reminder that any politics and/or religion discussed here would more appropriately be confined to Erfworld topics, rather than bringing up controversial Earth subjects.

Also along the politics line, there's nothing wrong in saying that Red, White and Blue are patriotic colors. After all, they are the flag colors for at least 26 nations. 29, if you count foreign-held territories that retain their own national flag. Inviting a Godwin in response seems a bit of an overreaction...

That being said, the signamancy idea would COMPLETELY warrant the use of "patriotic" colors, considering that nations choose their flag colors based on Earth's own, more mundane signamancy. There is a great deal of significance attached to color choices on Earth, with long traditions of certain colors standing for certain emotions or traits. For example, Western tradition considers blue to stand for trustworthiness, red to stand for passion (more specifically nationalism or courage, in flag contexts) and white for purity. If Erfworlders ascribe Signamancy to certain colors, as do Earthworlders, then the colors Parson arrives in could have a great deal of meaning to Jetstone. From all in-comic indications we've had so far, it seems Erfworlders are actually MORE likely to ascribe Signamancy than we are, so if this avenue is actually exlored further along in the plot, we could see some very interesting developments in Parson's wardrobe.

Occam's Razor is a useful tool but isn't a cure all. In Parson's case we know casters can enter the MK, we no non caster die when they enter the MK, he doesn't have caster in his goggles view but he has "special", since we don't have any real further information we can decide that he is most likely a caster or special counts him a caster for MK check. This doesn't prove anything and hence the endless speculation that has gone with his status.

True, but...

[The following seems like bad information to me, but it comes from the wikki. If it has been embellished then it should be restored to its canon state until real facts provide real cause for an update. That said, I'm too lazy to hunt for the specific comics where Parson's glasses or the Stupid Meal showed his own stats and those of Jack. I do think that the wikki entries for Parson and the 3d Glasses need some factual updates and corrections to rampant speculation (i.e.: "Since then, he has also considered croaking Stanley, though perhaps only as a thought experiment.", which is completely made up. He asked if he could hit Stanley with a thrown brick, as an example (thought experiment) when attempting to assay the efficacy of missile weapons used by units without bows. Interpreting this as Parson actually considering croaking Stanley is a complete fabrication and should be removed from the wikki page.]

Assuming the above is accurate, and I've already touched on why it is highly suspect, then Parson's "special" should have nothing to do with his escape from croaking via portal. If portals croak those who do not have the class "caster", Parson does not have the class "caster", and having a "special" is no indication that this rule should be ignored.

Darkmantle wrote:

For House you have an entirely different problem. Patient has symptoms A, B, C, D and ineviatably E, F and G appear later in the episode. Generally when they get to House himself the usual explanations for A,B,C have been tried but don't fit. The main problem is that there are a huge set of different conditions(lets call them v,x,y,z) that might cause A,B,C,D but they must be discarded when E appears, then they test their new hypothesis(generally by bullying patient or breaking into their home). When new explanation doesn't work they cast the net further afield.

So your standard House scene goes:[snipped for brevity]

Meh. I've seen too many episodes where the standard diagnosis fit the symptoms and the standard treatment was having the anticipated positive effect. And then House decides to keep the patient due to some 6th sense (I see zebras!) and finds zebras anyway. The show has jumped the shark, for me at least.

Stanley thought Parson should have disbanded. So either Stanley doesn't understand disbanding all that well, Parson has some trick to avoid disbandment or both.

Um, no. I explained both why Parson escaped disbanding and why Stanley was flabbergasted that he hadn't disband. Neither involved either Stanley being ignorant of the disbanding rules, or Parson having "some trick" to avoid disbanding due to disobedience. You just chose to snip those portions of my post away and then ignore the position I represented via those portions. Shame, shame.

oslecamo2 wrote:

Oberon wrote:

I'm not in either camp. I dislike the idea that Parson is a hippymancer, and there is enough "Special" about Parson that just about any exception to any rule can be reasonably theorized. But I can't say that there isn't ample evidence which would allow someone to reasonably arrive at the conclusion that Janice called it correctly and that the portal therefore acted correctly.

Hamster is "special". So far, this included:
-Nobody can see his stats besides his level. Why would the portal security system fare any better?
-Erfworld's built-in global censorship collapsed when Hamster got really pissed off.
-He can interpret orders in multiple ways.

You are assuming quite a lot here. Parson has the word "special" attached to his stats, as relayed via a Stupid Meal. That is a fact, and we have no reason to doubt the Stupid Meals as being a source of reliable canon. It is not a supportable fact that this "special" is the reason for any of the three bullet points you listed after citing that fact. You are free to speculate as to exactly what the "special" provides to Parson by way of exceptions to rules, etc. But this is you speculating, and is not canon.

- The causes behind the unseeable stats is unknown, and is not tied to the "special" the Stupid Meal shared with us by anything at all within canon. Also remember that Stanley shouted at Wanda "I can't even see his points!", and not "I can't see all of his points!" The only record of Parson's "points" that we have comes from the Stupid Meal. There is no evidence that anything at all about Parson is visible to anyone else. Parson can't see his stats (points) in a mirror. It's a shame that Parson never said that he can or can't see other unit's stats in a mirror, but this is a web comic and the amount of text is less than that of a novel as enforced by the format.

- The reason for the failure of the "boop" censure seems to be tied to the destruction of the Sword of Ruthlessness. Not to Parson being "really pissed off." Parson being Parson, I would expect that he would quickly figure out that "being pissed off" allowed him to break the rules. After that, we might reasonably expect to see a "really pissed off" Parson crowned king of all Erfworld.

- Here we agree. Parson can interpret orders in clever ways. He can, when told to not speak until ordered to, ask another unit other than Stanley to order him to speak. Any other Erf unit would probably be mute until Stanley rescinded that order. But I'm afraid that I don't see where this must be due to the "special" in his stats... It seems rather to be an innate capability which he has had his entire life, and has employed to make interesting gaming scenarios for himself and his friends, and lately to survive and prosper within the strange environs of Erfworld. In short, I do not see any tie between this aspect of Parson's personality and the "special" the Stupid Meal showed us.

ftl wrote:

Remember the conversation between Maggie and Parson? When it turned out he'd never had sexual contact with the Archons, Maggie didn't think this was noble or high-minded of him; no, it was just weird.

If he ran a side like that, that's the reaction he'd get. "How strange." And that's it. You are mistakenly assuming that for some reason, the units in his side would he happier than the units in other sides. I think you're wrong about that; Erf units don't think like Earth people in many ways, *especially* ways relating to morality and authority. The logistics of planning a revolution or a disbandment strike are pointless when the units won't even *want* to get to where you think they want to get to.

I think that I unfortunately must agree. It is quite sad, but the Warlords in a "Don't abuse your position for sex" Side run by Parson would be rather naturally bummed out by this seemingly unnecessary restriction upon their privileges of rank.

Think about it:

On Earth, casual sex can cause pregnancy (including teen pregnancy, which is unknown on Erf since there are no teens, and otherwise possibly unwanted pregnancies) and STDs. Abusive sex can cause physical injury. Customs such as man/woman relations have real and biological support due to the reproductive aspects of sex, which has made homosexuality taboo in many cultures, and in some cultures any non-procreative sexual act (oral,etc) is similarly taboo.

On Erfworld, sex cannot cause pregnancy or STDs. There is no pregnancy. No teen pregnancy, no pregnancy which impedes a career, no pregnancy which is inconvenient, no child rearing, no rearing costs. Simply. No. Pregnancy. This cannot be overstated as a significant difference between the two worlds. The more extreme sexual behavior (i.e. The BDSM between Wanda and Jillian which included beatings and whippings which drew blood) is completely healed at dawn. Since there is no reproductive function for sex, homosexual and/or non-reproductive sex acts should be viewed in the same light as any other sex act: Just for fun.
(disclaimer: I have nothing at all against our human childbearing biology. I am simply capable of imagining the ramifications of a universe which has different rules/biology.)

With this as the status queue, it is pretty easily understandable that a Ruler who ordered against such behavior would have units of low loyalty, as these would, in this world, be considered to be the perks of the job.

That said, it appears that Stanley does not order Wanda to drop to her knees and pleasure him every turn. And we haven't actually seen such behavior at all, from any unit. It is only Maggie who remarked on Parson's abstinence which gives us any view into the typical prerogatives of leadership.

build6 wrote:

well, if everyone in Erfworld thought like that then yeah there'd be no room for that. But I dunno, is Wrigley really representative? Maybe in their line up waiting to get executed plenty of Wrigley's comrades were thinking ("i didn't even want to be a stabber").

While I feel that this is a valid line of questioning, I also believe that the limitations of the format would prevent the author from presenting to we, the readers, the odd case or the unusual individual without also providing us with some indication that these persons were indeed unusual in their thoughts and values. If Wrigley or Bea were not typical in their thoughts and actions, then this should be represented to the reader in some fashion. As an example, we have such representation in spades with Jillian, as plenty of other cast members have called her behavior and actions into question.

The solid running theory on the 'boop' involves the restriction put on Erfworld during book 1 for its run on giantitp. It is a known fact that Rich does not put any colorful language into his books and other website materials and it is strictly enforced on his website as a 'vulgarity free' webcomic. There have been many commments on this before and this was Parson's expression of breaking free of that restriction. Made for a good gag through out the book on why the erfworldians understood the 'concept' of the boop but not its meaning. - Do not take this for canon but a huge tinfoil hat therom :0

The solid running theory on the 'boop' involves the restriction put on Erfworld during book 1 for its run on giantitp. It is a known fact that Rich does not put any colorful language into his books and other website materials and it is strictly enforced on his website as a 'vulgarity free' webcomic. There have been many commments on this before and this was Parson's expression of breaking free of that restriction. Made for a good gag through out the book on why the erfworldians understood the 'concept' of the boop but not its meaning. - Do not take this for canon but a huge tinfoil hat therom :0

Well, yeah, that's obviously the out-of-story reason for why the boop filter was there and why it was only broken at the end.

But it was worked in as part of the story - so there's also an in-story reason and mechanic for how and why it works the way it does.

Not sure if anyone noticed this, but the shredder gauntlet and staff on and in one of his hands are red whereas his mathamancy bracer and the sword (andumaril from lord of the rings?) scabbard/hilt on his other side are blue. Is it a balance between something?

Maybe it's Signamancy

the 3-d glases were optical red blue .....
maybe it's a thing with parson
and yeah effectively some sort of yin/yan neutral.

The solid running theory on the 'boop' involves the restriction put on Erfworld during book 1 for its run on giantitp. It is a known fact that Rich does not put any colorful language into his books and other website materials and it is strictly enforced on his website as a 'vulgarity free' webcomic. There have been many commments on this before and this was Parson's expression of breaking free of that restriction. Made for a good gag through out the book on why the erfworldians understood the 'concept' of the boop but not its meaning. - Do not take this for canon but a huge tinfoil hat therom :0

Well, yeah, that's obviously the out-of-story reason for why the boop filter was there and why it was only broken at the end.

But it was worked in as part of the story - so there's also an in-story reason and mechanic for how and why it works the way it does.

i think where it is part of the story is Parson just like he has intended in his own turn based game ..
is breaking the world to win.
he stated that he created a game you couldn't win within the rules
so you had to out smart the world of the game to beat it ..he is breaking erf world
while erf world is trying to break/mold him...

i say go back to the initial spell cast by wanda and see how the world is trying to conform Parson to the spells ideal. both physically, magically and mentally

ok, for a completely different direction in the conversation, is that a cute little park down at the base of the tower? Or do you reckon it is something more resource based like an eel-pond? Whichever it is, I do love the tiny details in environment as well as in eyes, arms and armour.

Incidentally, (sorry for not quoting properly) wouldn't a mutually dependent relationship be 'symbiotic'? I think 'almost parasitic' would only make sense if only one side was benefiting. It seems to me that both Parson and Erfworld/spellcasters/spellcreators got, at least, what they thought they wanted.

what happens when, because Parson is Parson, his side doesn't use underlings for sex etc. - doesn't basically do the things erfworld "expects" to be done/is normal, and the various other sides decide this is an aberration that needs to be exterminated because it's making their own people unhappy ("I'd rather automatically disband than live this way. Heck, there's a side down south where their overlord DOES allow them to live like this!" We do know, that erf-lings do question what life is all about - Janis, Tramennis etc. - everybody with any introspection, basically), and there's an anti-Parson coalition as a result? Then the only way for Parson to live the way he does is to win over the entire world so he can establish his rules everywhere

On Earth, Napoleon kept smashing coalitions formed against him. But they just kept getting reformed bigger.

In-page footnotes, comments, and transcripts on comic pages require enabling in-page JavaScript. View the footnotes on the wiki here, and the transcript on the wiki here